Biofilm composite design on pumice stone for phenol degradation in batik industrial waste

Biofilm formed by bacterial activity of Acinetobacter sp. and cow's stomach bacteria consortium has been developed on pumice stone. The biofilm were characterised by scanning electron microscopy to find out the morphology of pumice's surface. Total plate count (TPC) analysis was also conducted to investigate the cell density. Observation by scanning electron microscopy evidenced the present of abundant exopolymeric material surrounding the cells in the biofilm. The two variant of biofilm will be tested to degrade phenol, a pollutant from batik industry's waste. The influence of aeration on biofilm's activity for phenol degradation was also determined. Phenol degradation monitored during four hours operation. With the addition of aeration, cow's stomach bacteria consortium biofilm can degrade 89% of 10 ppm phenol while Acinetobacter sp. biofilm can only degrade 77% of 10 ppm phenol. It can then be concluded that biofilm from cow's stomach bacteria consortium can degrade phenol better than Acinetobacter sp.